The Green Bay Packers know if they want to find success during the 2023 season, especially early on, they will need a good performance from their defense. With so much inexperience on the offensive side of the ball, Matt LaFleur knows his defense will have to lead the way in the early going.
Green Bay has some concerns on the ground which they will have to figure out. Last season they ranked 26th in rushing yards allowed and 28th in yards per carry. Without improvements from the defensive line and linebackers, the Packers could once again struggle to stop opposing offenses.
However, for how much the run defense struggled, the pass defense got the job done. Green Bay was ranked sixth in passing yards allowed and allowed a passer rating of 88.3. Despite that performance, PFF has ranked the team’s secondary as a middle-of-the-pack unit heading into the 2023 season.
The Packers came in at No. 16, dead in the middle of the NFL. Given their performance last season and having arguably the best cornerback in the NFL in Jaire Alexander, that ranking is a little low. However, PFF docked the team because of how shaky the safety situation is.
“Alexander is the highest-graded cornerback in the NFL over the last three seasons, and Douglas has graded above 70.0 in each of the past two years playing opposite him. However, this group has question marks for 2023, especially at the safety position. Savage is a former first-round pick, but he hasn’t played up to that status, as his 47.5 grade was one of the worst at the position in 2022.”
2021 first-round pick Eric Stokes is recovering from foot and knee injuries and remains without a timetable. But, with Rasual Douglas playing at the level he is, the Packers can afford to wait and not rush Stokes back into the lineup.
When that trio is healthy, it is one of the best groups in the NFL. Alas, for how much confidence the team and fans have in that group, they are unconfident in the safety position.
With Adrian Amos moving on in free agency, signing with the New York Jets after Chuck Clark’s knee injury, Jonathan Owens or Travarius Moore will likely start opposite of Darnell Savage Jr. Unless Savage can regain the form that led to the Packers selecting him in the first round in 2019, the overall production of the secondary could be negatively impacted by the safety position.